Dual boot works only sometime please read on

jkb242

Member
When the dual boot manger loads properly, everything works normally but a fairly high percentage of the time my system hangs before seeing the dual boot menu--never afteward!

Before the dual boot menu is presented there is a page of text that flyes so quickly it can't be read but it is likely reporting the boot process. When things don't right, this screen is presented with a blinking cursor. It will stay there forever when this happens.

NO way to clt-alt delet from the keyboard to re-boot have to power down and restart. Often that will work but sometimes it takes two attempts to restart.

Any suggestions as to what may be causing this and where I should look first?

Thanks@!!!
 
Which boot manager are you using ?
It sounds like you've got a problem during POST, maybe bad memory, poor connection(s) to your HDD etc.
Try switching off at the wall, (leave the plug in to keep the chassis earthed), opening up the box and reseating all your PCI cards, memory sticks and drive connectors, and then F8 and select memory test when you power up again (It may be an option on a second screen).
 
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Tab when the menu displays. With Windows Memory Diagnostic highlighted on the lower half of the screen hit enter.
 
I did a bit more investigating and found that after post and just before the boot loader is presneted, the system is detecting each drive in the sytem. For me that is three SATA's and one USB known as device 83. Each drive is read to some degree beginning with device 80-83. At device 83 is where the system hangs.

If I power off the USB drive, the system boots with no issue. This is a new WD MyBook drive that was made for the MAC but this only began when I started using a dual boot configuration. That is what seems puzzling. I got the Mac version of the Mybook because it had fire wire, USB and ESATA. The Windows version does not have all these interfaces.

Can anyone tell me why the dual boot configuration is having an issue with the drive?

I really don't like powering it on each time after I boot.

Thanks!!
 
I think the problem might be the order the PnP devices are detected at boot, not matching that when the dual-boot was set-up (you might have had a flash-drive connected then and not now or vice-versa).
There's always going to be a potential problem with an OS installed to a movable device.
 
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